Written and first recorded Joe Walsh (1979).
Hit album versions by Eagles (1979), Anybody Killa (2003)
From the wiki: “‘In the City’ was written by Barry De Vorzon (‘Nadia’s Theme‘) and Joe Walsh, and was first recorded by Walsh for release on the 1979 soundtrack album to The Warriors. Walsh recalls: ‘I went to junior-high school at P.S. 216 in Queens (NYC). I was in a gang, but we weren’t that tough because I had to be in by 7:30 to practice clarinet. Anyway, I came up with ‘In The City’ out of memories of growing up partly in New York City, which contrasted a lot from where I lived before that, which was Ohio.’
Written and first recorded by Van Morrison (US #28/CAN #20/NETH #24 1971).
Other hit versions by Martha Reeves (R&B #74 1974), John Mellencamp & Me’Shell Ndegeocello (US #3/MOR #1/CAN #1/UK #34/AUS #18 1994).
From the wiki: “‘Wild Night’ was first recorded by Van Morrison during a session with Lewis Merenstein as producer at Warners Publishing Studio in New York City in autumn 1968. The version released on Tupelo Honey was recorded in spring 1971 at Wally Heider Studios in San Francisco with Ted Templeman as producer. Tom Maginnis in Allmusic describes the song as ‘an effusive three and a half minutes of Stax-inspired R&B.’
Written and first recorded by Warren Zevon (1976).
Hit album version by Linda Ronstadt (1976).
From the wiki: “‘Hasten Down the Wind’ was song written and first recorded by Warren Zevon, featured on his eponymous major-label 1976 debut album. The track was produced by Jackson Browne, who had met Zevon in the mid-seventies. Their relationship played a significant role in Zevon’s career thereafter. It was with Browne’s assistance that Zevon got a major record contract. Zevon’s version of the song features Phil Everly singing harmony vocals, and also David Lindley playing slide guitar.
“During the early 1970s, Zevon toured regularly with The Everly Brothers as keyboard player, band leader, and musical coordinator. Later, he toured and recorded with Don Everly and Phil Everly separately, as they each attempted to launch solo careers after the breakup of their duo. Zevon’s own dissatisfaction with his career (and a lack of funds) led him to move to Spain in the summer of 1975, where he lived and played in the Dubliner Bar, a small tavern in Sitges, near Barcelona, owned by David Lindell, a former mercenary. (Together they composed ‘Roland the Headless Thompson Gunner’.)
“By September 1975, Zevon had returned to Los Angeles where he roomed with Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham, who had by now gained fame as members of Fleetwood Mac. There Zevon met and collaborated with Jackson Browne, who produced and promoted Zevon’s major-label debut album, Warren Zevon, in 1976. Contributors to the album included Nicks, Buckingham, Mick Fleetwood, John McVie, members of the Eagles, Carl Wilson, Linda Ronstadt, and Bonnie Raitt.
Originally recorded by The Zombies (1965 |JPN #8 1967).
Hit versions by The Carnabeats (JPN #2 1967), People! (US #18/CAN #7/AUS #1/JPN #1 1968).
http://youtu.be/wxstv3_sMWM
From the wiki: “‘I Love You’ was a 1965 song by The Zombies, written by their drummer, Chris White. It was recorded by The Zombies and released as the B-side to ‘Whenever You’re Ready’ but failed to make either the US or UK singles charts and achieved only limited chart success elsewhere. However, the song was translated into Japanese (as ‘Sukisa Sukisa Sukisa’) and recorded in 1967 by Tokyo band The Carnabeats. ‘Sukisa’ would debut locally at #7 before peaking in November 1967 at #2. The success of The Carnabeats’ Japanese version resulted in the original version by The Zombies being re-released in Japan, and it became a best-selling hit and ranked #8 for 1967.
“The production of this song was epic. On the day of the first session, January 19, the song was not yet finished. The group recorded the basic rhythm track in a simple manner (piano, acoustic guitar, bass, drums, bongos and maracas). John’s voice, wrapped up in a heavy echo, was particularly moving. Instead of a traditional countdown, John called out ‘sugarplum fairy, sugarplum fairy.’ The whole team felt emotion. Audio engineer Geoff Emerick remembers shivering as he heard this.
First recorded by Boffalongo (1969).
Also recorded by High Broom (1970).
Hit versions by King Harvest (first released 1970 |US #13 1972), Toploader (UK #7 2000).
From the wiki: “‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ was written in 1968 by Sherman Kelly, whose brother, Wells Kelly – King Harvest’s drummer in the early 1970s – introduced the song to the band. It was first recorded in 1969 by the American band, Boffalongo, which included Sherman Kelly (who sang lead on this original recording of his own composition) and future King Harvest frontman, Doc Robinson. The song was also recorded in 1970 in the UK by High Broom and released as a single by Island Records without any apparent chart impact.
Co-written and first recorded by Bruce Springsteen (1978, released 2010).
Hit version by Patti Smith Group (US #13/UK #5 1978).
From the wiki: “Written by Bruce Springsteen, ‘Because the Night’ song was first recorded by Springsteen during sessions for the Darkness on the Edge of Town album. He was not satisfied with it; the Patti Smith Group was working on Easter in the studio next door, with engineer/producer Jimmy Iovine working on both albums. Iovine gave Smith a tape of the song; she recast it, including ‘Because the Night’ on Easter, becoming the first single released from that album.
Written and first recorded by Bob Dylan (1965).
Hit versions by Them (1965 |GER #12 1973), The Byrds (B-side 1969), Graham Bonnet (AUS #3 1977).
Also recorded by Joan Baez (1965), Dion (1965, released 1969), The Byrds (1965, released 1987), The 13th Floor Elevators (1967), (as “Baby Blue”) by The Seldom Scene (1975), The Animals (1977).
From the wiki: “‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’ was written and performed by Bob Dylan and featured on his 1965 Bringing It All Back Home album. The song was originally recorded with Dylan’s acoustic guitar and harmonica and William E. Lee’s bass guitar the only instrumentation. Dylan’s two previous albums, The Times They Are A-Changin’ and Another Side of Bob Dylan both ended with a farewell song, ‘Restless Farewell’ and ‘It Ain’t Me, Babe’ respectively. ‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’ concludes Bringing It All Back Home in consistent fashion.
“Dylan played the song for Donovan in his hotel room during his May 1965 tour of England in a scene shown in the D. A. Pennebaker documentary Don’t Look Back; a version of the song is also included on the soundtrack to Martin Scorsese’s documentary No Direction Home. In a 2005 readers’ poll reported in Mojo, ‘It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue’ was listed as the #10 all-time-best Bob Dylan song.
First released by The Flying Burrito Brothers (1970).
Hit version by The Rolling Stones (recorded 1969 |released US #28 1971).
From the wiki: “‘Wild Horses’ was written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards for the Rolling Stones’ 1971 album Sticky Fingers. Originally recorded over a three-day period at Muscle Shoals Sound Studio in Alabama during 2–4 December 1969, the public would not hear the results until almost 18 months later due to legal wranglings with the band’s former label, Atco, and manager, Allen Klein.
Written and first recorded by Jules Shear (1983).
Also recorded (but unreleased) by The Cars (1983).
Hit version by Cyndi Lauper (US #5/UK #64/CAN #7/AUS #17 1983).
From the wiki: “‘All Through the Night’ was written as a mid-tempo folk-rock song by Jules Shear for his album Watch Dog. After The Cars recorded their own version, and then decided they did not want to use the song on any forthcoming album.
“Cyndi Lauper decided to cover ‘All Through the Night’ for her debut album, She’s So Unusual, (with Shears on background vocals). Although Lauper initially intended to do a straight cover of Shear’s version, she instead turned it into a Pop ballad instead. The song was Lauper’s only single released worldwide not accompanied by a music video. Nonetheless, it peaked Top 5 in the U.S. on the Billboard Hot 100.”
Written and first recorded by Ian Hunter (1979).
Hit version by Barry Manilow (US #9/MOR #4/CAN #29 1979).
From the wiki: “Ian Hunter (‘Once Bitten Twice Shy‘) began writing ‘Ships’ when he was with Mott The Hoople (1969-1974) but didn’t record it until 1979, for his solo album You’re Never Alone With A Schizophrenic. The song has been described as a hymn-like ballad about Hunter’s relationship with his father.
“‘Ships’ was soon after recorded by singer Barry Manilow for his sixth studio album, One Voice. Hunter recalled to Mojo magazine: ‘That whole Manilow thing was quite amusing. That guy’s no slouch when it comes to arranging. His dad had died and the song struck him that way, too.'”
Written and first recorded by Russ Ballard (1976).
Hit versions by Clout (1978), Head East (US #46 1978), Rainbow (US #57/UK #6 1979), Cherie & Marie Currie (US #95 1980).
From the wiki: “‘Since You Been Gone’ is the title of a rock song written and recorded by the former Argent guitarist, Russ Ballard (‘Winning‘), and first released on his 1976 album, Winning. Rainbow’s 1979 cover version with the lead singer, Graham Bonnet, was a Top 10 single in the United Kingdom, and was named the 82nd best hard rock song of all time by VH1.
“Other, earlier cover versions include those by Head East (1978) and by Clout (1978), originally a five-piece, South African million-selling all-girl rock group formed in 1977 and best known for their song, ‘Substitute’. Cherie Currie (The Runaways) also recorded ‘Since You Been Gone’ as a duet with her twin, Marie Currie, on their Messin’ with the Boys album in 1980.
Written and first recorded by Neil Young (1978).
Hit version by Nicolette Larson (US #8/MOR #1/AUS #11/NZ #22 1978).
http://youtu.be/GhQr0kndwBE
From the wiki: “‘Lotta Love’ is a Neil Young composition written c. 1976 and performed in-concert before being recorded by Young for his 1978 album Comes a Time. ‘Lotta Love’ served as the lead single for Larson’s Ted Templeman-produced Nicolette album. Due to a delay in release, Comes a Time was released on the same day in September 1978 as was Nicolette. The release of any single off the Nicolette album was held off until November when it was clear Young’s version would not have be released as an A-side (although Young’s ‘Lotta Love’ would be released as the B-side of a non-charting ‘Comes a Time’ single).
Inspired by “You Never Can Tell”, Chuck Berry (1964).
Hit versions by Dave Edmunds (UK #26/AUS #32 1977), Nick Lowe & His Cowboy Outfit (US #77 1985).
Also recorded by Nick Lowe’s Last Chicken in the Shop (1978).
From the wiki: “Nick Lowe has indicated Chuck Berry’s ‘You Never Can Tell’ was the source of inspiration for his own song ‘I Knew The Bride (When She Used To Rock’n’Roll)’, first recorded and made popular in 1977 by Dave Edmunds. Lowe, the song’s writer, also recorded it as part of the 1978 Live Stiffs Live concert compilation (as ‘Nick Lowe’s Last Chicken in the Shop’) and, again, in the studio in 1985 with Huey Lewis & the News. This version was released as a single, peaking at #77 on the Billboard Hot 100.
First recorded (as a rehearsal demo) by Ringo Starr with George Harrison (1969).
Hit album version by The Beatles (1969).
https://youtu.be/yqZp327u39c
From the wiki: “The idea for ‘Octopus’s Garden’ came about when Ringo Starr was on a boat in Sardenia belonging to comedian Peter Sellers in 1968. Starr ordered fish and chips for lunch, but instead of fish he got squid (it was the first time he’d eaten squid, and he said, ‘It was OK. A bit rubbery. Tasted like chicken.’) Then, the boat’s captain told Starr about how octopuses travel along the sea bed picking up stones and shiny objects with which to build gardens. The Let It Be film included a scene in which Harrison is shown helping Starr work the song out on piano.
First recorded (as a demo) by Paul McCartney (1969).
First released by Aretha Franklin (1970).
Hit versions by The Beatles (US #1/UK #2/CAN #4/AUS #1/NZ #1/IRE #1/MOR #1/GER #2 1970), Ferry Aid (UK #1 1987).
From the wiki: “‘Let It Be’ was written by Paul McCartney (but credited to Lennon-McCartney), recorded by The Beatles, and released in March 1970 as a single and (in an alternate mix) as the title track of the group’s album Let It Be. But, The Beatles weren’t the first to release this song: Aretha Franklin was. The Queen of Soul recorded it in December, 1969, and it was released on her album This Girl’s In Love With You (but not as a single) in January, 1970, two months before The Beatles released their US and UK single in March 1970.
First recorded by René Shuman (1986).
Based on “Loch Lomond” (traditional).
Hit version by Rod Stewart (US #5/UK #3/CAN #1/IRE #1/AUS #2 1991).
From the wiki: “‘Rhythm of My Heart’ is a rock song written by Marc Jordan and John Capek for Dutch rock ‘n roll artist René Shuman’s 1986 debut album René Shuman, with a melody adapted from ‘Loch Lomond’.
First recorded (as a demo) by Paul McCartney (1967).
Hit album/EP version by The Beatles (1967).
Also recorded by Sharon Tandy (1968).
Hit single versions by Sergio Mendes & Brasil ’66 (US #6/MOR #1/AUS #14 1968), Eddie Fisher (1968), Shirley Bassey (UK #48 1969).
From the wiki: “‘The Fool on the Hill’ was written by Paul McCartney (but credited to Lennon-McCartney) and was his major contribution to the Magical Mystery Tour EP and album, released in late 1967, and to the Magical Mystery Tour TV film broadcast on Boxing Day (December 26), 1967. McCartney recorded a solo demo version of the song in the on 6 September 1967. The recording of the song by the group began in earnest on 25 September and was completed in two days, with flutes added a month later.
Co-written by Nick Lowe and first recorded by Brinsley Schwarz (1974).
Hit version by Nick Lowe (US #12/UK #12 1979).
Also recorded by Enjoh Santyuutei (as “Koi No Howan Howan”) (1982), co-writer Ian Gomm (1997), Stavros Michalakakos (as “Vres to Nisi”) (2010).
From the wiki: “Nick Lowe co-wrote the song with his Brinsley Schwarz band mate, Ian Gomm, for the Brinsley Schwarz album, It’s All Over Now, though said album was never officially released. In 1979, Lowe re-recorded the song for his second solo album, Labour of Lust. Released as a single, ‘Cruel to be Kind’ peaked at #12 in both the US and the UK.”
“In 1982, Enjoh Santyuutei released a Japanese-language cover of the song. Lowe’s former Brinsley Schwarz band-mate. and ‘Cruel to be Kind’ co-writer, Ian Gomm recorded his version of ‘Cruel to be Kind’ in 1997 for the album Crazy for You (which would also be included on the 2005 Nick Lowe tribute album Lowe Profile). In 2010, Greek pop singer Stavros Michalakakos, second-season winner of the Greek version of the The X Factor, recorded ‘Cruel to be Kind’ as his debut single release.”
Co-written and first recorded (as a demo) by Barry Mann (1965).
Hit versions by The Animals (US #13/UK #2/CAN #13/GER #31 1965), Angels (AUS #7/NZ #13 1987).
Also performed by Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band (1976).
From the wiki: “‘We Gotta Get Out of This Place’ was written by the husband-wife songwriting team of Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, and recorded as a 1965 hit single by The Animals. It has become an iconic song and was immensely popular among United States Armed Forces during the Vietnam War. The song had been intended for The Righteous Brothers, for whom Mann-Weil had already written the #1 hit ‘You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin”, but then Mann gained a recording contract for himself, and his label Redbird Records wanted him to release it instead.
“Meanwhile, record executive Allen Klein had also heard the demo and – without the knowledge of Mann or his producer, Don Kirshner – gave it to Mickie Most, The Animals’ producer. (Most already had a call out to Brill Building songwriters for material for The Animal’s next recording session Two of the group’s hits ‘It’s My Life’ and ‘Don’t Bring Me Down’ resulted from the same call.)
First recorded by The Strangeloves (US #11/CAN #7 1965).
Hit versions by Brian Poole & the Tremeloes (UK #25 1965), Bow Wow Wow (US #62/UK #9/IRE #7/AUS #39 1983), Candy Girls (UK #30 1996), Aaron Carter (UK #31/SWE #10/AUS #37/NETH #37 2000), Melanie C. (UK #7/ITA #9/DEN #12 2007).
Also recorded by Pop ‘n Fresh (2008).
From the wiki: “‘I Want Candy’ was written by Bert Berns, Bob Feldman, Jerry Goldstein and Richard Gottehrer (‘My Boyfriend’s Back’) in 1965. For this song, the trio took on the moniker of The Strangeloves, and recorded the tune themselves, augmented by studio musicians. Although Feldman, Goldstein and Gottehrer used their real names in the writing and production credits of this single, they claimed The Strangeloves were actually three Australian brothers (and ex-sheep farmers) named Giles, Miles and Niles Strange. Feldman, Goldstein and Gottehrer dressed up in shaggy wigs and exotic clothing for publicity photos as The Strangeloves.
“It was The Strangelove’s second single, becoming a Top 10 hit in Canada and hitting #11 in the US. But, the record failed to chart in the UK — or in The Strangeloves’ so-called ‘native’ country, Australia. (A cover by Brian Poole & the Tremeloes, however, charted in the UK and peaked at #25.)
First recorded (as a demo) by John Lennon (1968).
Hit album version by The Beatles (1968).
Also recorded by Ramsey Lewis (1968), Medeski, Martin & Wood and John Scofield (2006), Mike Patton & Carla Hassett (2009), Sean Lennon (2009)
From the wiki: “‘Julia’ was written by John Lennon (credited to Lennon–McCartney) during The Beatles’ 1968 visit to Rishikesh in northern India, where they were studying under the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. It was there where Lennon learned the song’s finger-picking guitar style (known as ‘Travis-picking’) from Scottish musician Donovan. Lennon recorded his demo of ‘Julia’ during the very casual May 1968 new song reviews conducted by the Beatles at Esher, George Harrison’s estate, following the group’s return from India.
First recorded (as a demo) by George Harrison (1968).
Hit album version by The Beatles (1968).
Also recorded by Kenny Rankin (1976), Jeff Healey (1990), Jake Shimabukuro (2004), Tom Petty & Jeff Lynne (2004).
https://youtu.be/wagTIytC5xo
From the wiki: “Inspiration for the song came to Geroge Harrison when reading the I Ching, which, as Harrison put it, ‘seemed to me to be based on the Eastern concept that everything is relative to everything else… opposed to the Western view that things are merely coincidental.’ Taking this idea of relativism to his parents’ home in northern England, Harrison committed to write a song based on the first words he saw upon opening a random book. Those words were ‘gently weeps’, and he immediately began writing the song.
First recorded (as a demo) by The Beatles (1968).
Hit version by The Beatles (US #12 1968).
Also recorded by The Beatles (as “Revolution 1”) (1968), The Beatles (as “Revolution #9”) (1968).
http://youtu.be/sPi4Bkh8H_o
From the wiki: “Around the fourth week of May 1968, The Beatles met at Kinfauns (George Harrison’s home in Esher) to demonstrate their compositions to each other in preparation for recording their next studio album. During his time in Rishikesh, India, that past February, John Lennon decided to write a song about the recent wave of social upheaval. He recalled, ‘I thought it was about time we spoke about it [revolution], the same as I thought it was about time we stopped not answering about the Vietnamese war. I had been thinking about it up in the hills in India.’ A bootleg recording from the informal Esher session shows that ‘Revolution’ had two of its three verses intact. The line referencing Mao Zedong was added to the lyrics in the studio. During filming of a promotional clip later that year, Lennon told the director that it was the most important lyric of the song. Lennon had changed his mind by 1972, saying ‘I should have never put that in about Chairman Mao.’
